Improvement in priming- metallic cartridges



PATENTED MAR. 20, 1866.

E. BERDAN. PRIMING METALLIC CARTRIDGES.

Unrrnn 5 STAT-ES, PATENT OFFICE.

HIRAM BERDAN, OF NEW- YORK, N. Y.,

ARMS MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN" PRIMING METALLIC CARTRIDGBS Speoificalionforming part ofLetters Patent No. 53,388, dated March 20, 1866.

To all whom it may concern I Be it known that I, HIRAM Bnanamot' thecity, county, and State of New York, have in-' ence being bad to theaccompanying drawings.

This invention relates to an improvement in that class of cartridgesknown as center-fire cartridges, whether such cartridges have theirentire shells or their heads or bottoms only made of metal. The objectof this improvement is partly to insure the prevention of the accidentalignition ofthe i'nlminate-primin g to which other center-fire cartridgesare liable in the manufacture, or when packed and transported, a numbertogether; partly to bettr'iii snre the ignition of said priming by theblow of the hammer; and partly to enable the shell to be reloaded,reprimed, and used over again, if desired, for target practice, or inany case in which it might be convenient to save the shell, withoutrenewal or. replacement of any of its parts but the cap, pellet, orother primer. The head or bottom of the cartridge is-constructed orfitted with a cup, into which the fulminate-priming, in the form of acap, pellet, or otherwise, is inserted in such manner as to be entirelycontained some distance within the outer face of the head or bottom ofthe shell; "andjn the bottom of the said cup there is apermanently-fixed projection in a rearward direction, against which thefnlminate-priming is driven by the hammer, and which presents a point orso small a surface that the entire force of the blow of the hammer is soconcentrated on a small portion of the priming as to insure itsignition.

Figural in the accompanying drawings is a central longitudinal sectionof a ball-car- I tridge constructed according to this iiivention,

on a scale larger than the real size. Fig. 2 is a rear end view or thesame.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspending parts in bothfigures.

In the bottom of this cup, which projects intothe cartridge, there is avent-hole, r, for the passage of the fire from the priming to thecharge, and there is also an outward teat-like projection, s, orprojecting point, which is represented as formed by indenting the bottomof the cup on the inner side, but which may be formed by depressing themetalaround it, or by makin g a hole and inserting and securing a smallpin or teat of solid metal; but in any case it must constitute apermanent portion of the cup which will not be detached during the 1 0fthe earn ngs ,Tlhe priming is .re re. sented as being in the form of ashallow pelletlike cap, 1, containing the fulminate what it may be inany other form-that will permit its insertion loosely into the cup N, inwhich it is secured by means of water-proof varnish or other adhesivematerial, at such distance from the outside of the head that it may beproteeted from the points of the conical bullets or 'any other bodies,the contact or concussion of which might be liable to prodncetheignition of the fulminate. The fulminate is toward the teat or point e.

The fulminate is to be fired by means of a firing-pin struck by thehammer or by the point of a hammer, which will enter the cup N, anddrive the priming forward against the teat or point 8, which presents sosmall a surface that the force of the blow is concentrated on anexceedin gl y small surface of the priming andwill insure its explosion.The rim of the cap texpands within the cup N in firing, in such manneras to. form a gas-check.

In the operation of this cartridge no portioncup, in which a new primingcan be inserted if desired to reload the cartridge.

One advantage of this cartridge is that it maybe loaded before theapplication of the priming, thus not only rendering its manufaeASSIGNOR-TO "rn'n BnnnAn FIRE- time less dengewoustheh eheh of otherprimed flexing the storege safer, hut preventing the detez'iomiieh towhich the fnlmhlete-primieg is eebjeee m cartridges when kept for 2,long time.

What I claim myinventioe, end} desire {to secure by Lehiere Peiehh, ie-

The fixed permanent teat-like projection s ehthe bottom-of the cup N inthe h of e eartridlgeflm combination with the pellet or other priminginserted into and promoted within the id cup, substantially as hereinset for. v

Witnesses:

HENRY T. Beowez; 11; W. G

is, BERDAN.

